Betting Systems - Division School Rivalries

Rivalries in sports are abundant. Similar to high school rivalries, professional and college sports rivalries often intensify games and create added pressure to both teams. College sports (NCAAB and NCAAF) are actually a hotbed of rivalries, from intersectional rivalries, to cross-town rivalries, to even in-state rivalries. Pride becomes a big thing in sports, and this can be seen clearer in college sports. College students are but a few years away from high school students, and thus are not as emotionally mature as professional athletes. This then, makes college sports rivalries most intense.


In college football, there has been a recent trend of playing for a trophy in rivalry games. This added incentive will push both teams to their potential, and in betting terms will skew the lines as such. Since both teams in a rivalry will ‘bring it’, the line will be a little bit lower than what it really should be—meaning the favored team will not be as favored as much. For example, during the past few years, even though USC has owned UCLA and the men of Troy have statistically beaten them year after year, and even considering USC has been consistently ranked in the Top 25 year after year, the Trojans were still only favored by 3 touchdowns in their 2005 matchup (a game in which they destroyed the Bruins 66-19). This highlights the fact that betting on rivalries can be somewhat tricky.


Betting on the underdog in rivalry games is generally a good idea, since most rivalry games are relatively close contests. But, as the USC-UCLA example shows, if the favorite is indeed that much better than the underdog, it would not be very wise to back the underdog. Rivalries such as Auburn-Alabama games that have historically low scoring games are obvious exceptions. In these instances, it is better to get the points and back the underdog in low scoring affairs. Underdogs become ‘live’ and are at higher likelihood to win the game straight up.


In professional sports, such as the National Basketball Association (NBA), division rivalries intensify matchups. If a home team has lost 3 consecutive games to the same team and is now facing the same team at home, the prior would be that much more motivated in beating the latter. Called triple revenge, the home team will give it their best and bring forth a greater motivation into beating their division rival. As a bettor, one should look out for such situations, and pending other systems and angles, one should obviously consider backing a team seeking triple revenge.


In all, rivalries in sports make the games more interesting. Even if one does not follow sports, infamous matchups such as Yankees-Red Sox, Lakers-Kings, etc., all make for interesting conversation. In betting terms, betting the underdog in rivalries is usually the best bet, pending other systems and angles in play.

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